Abu Simbel is a small village in southern Egypt, close to the Sudanese border, famous for the great Temple of Ramses II and the Temple of Hathor.
Temple of Ramses II
The Temple of Ramses II was carved out of the mountain on the west bank of the Nile in the 13th century BCE, during the reign of the great pharaoh.
The temple, dedicated to the gods Ra-Horakhty, Amun, Ptah, and to Ramses himself, is commonly attributed to the pharaoh’s vanity, but is without a doubt his greatest achievement. Considered a miracle of engineering, the Great temple was so precise in its orientation that on the spring and vernal equinox, the rising sun would flood directly through the great entrance over 200 feet inside the mountain and illuminate the innermost chamber, the sacred sanctuary where the four gods sit on their thrones.
At the entrance to the temple, stand the four famous statues of Ramses II, 20m in height, but only three remain completely intact. Alongside them are smaller statues of the Pharaoh’s mother, his wife Nefertari and their children.
Inside the temple, the main hall is supported by eight magnificent statues of the pharaoh and the ceiling is decorated with vultures. Reliefs cover the walls inside the entire temple, most depict Ramses killing his enemies in various battles, the most famous being the Battle of Kadesh with the Hittites.
Temple of Hathor
During Ramses long reign (67 years), he acquired numerous wives, but his first and favourite wife was Queen Nefertari. Next to his own colossal monument, he had built a smaller rock-cut temple of Hathor (the goddess love and fertility), and dedicated it to Nefertari.
At the temple entrance, stand six massive statues reaching approximately 10m in height. Two of the statues depict Nefertari standing next to Ramses, but they are equal in height, an unusual honour, as no other consort shared the pharaoh’s stature.
Inside the entrance is the hypostyle hall that contains six beautifully carved pillars. In the hall, the vestibule and adjoining chambers, all the walls are adorned with reliefs, many of which have maintained their original colour.
Preservation of the Temples
What is most remarkable about these two temples is their survival. Lost to the world for centuries under the desert sands, the temples were uncovered by explorers in the 19th century, found in a remarkable state of preservation.
After surviving over 3000 years intact, this sacred site, along with other Nubian monuments, was threatened by the formation of Nasser’s controversial High Dam project which got underway in 1958. In response, UNESCO launched an international emergency rescue campaign in the 1960s, whereby the temples of Ramses II and Hathor were chiseled out of their cliff face, transferred and reconstructed on higher ground.
The rescue campaign was unprecedented in terms of both its scale and the difficulties involved. The two temples were cut out of their original mountainside into more than 2000 huge blocks, weighing anywhere from 10 to 40 tonnes each, all the while fighting against the rising water levels of the Nile. The temples were reconstructed inside a specially built mountain about 65m higher and 210m away from the original site, which is now under Lake Nasser.
The cost of the project totalled around 40 million dollars US and took over four years to complete.
How to get to Abu Simbel
Unless one flies EgyptAir to Abu Simbel from Aswan, the only way to get to the village is by road, escorted by a police convoy. Travel by taxis is forbidden to foreigners, so minibus or coaches are the only remaining options. Most tourists go for an organized tour, which usually includes both the admission and a guide.
The Egyptian government introduced the controversial convoy system after multiple terrorist attacks on foreigners in the 1990s. While travel advisories have been lifted by Western embassies in Egypt, police continue to escort foreigners today. The convoys are much criticised by tourists as they not only dictate when people can travel to places like Abu Simbel (only in the morning), but the length of time visitors may remain at these sites (a couple of hours). Further, routine and scheduled trips brought about by the convoy system are arguably more vulnerable to terrorist attacks than unscheduled travel.
Despite the hassle of getting to Abu Simbel and the limited time one can spend there, the experience is unforgettable. The site of the rock temples and colossal statues of Ramses II are remarkable not only in terms of their size and magnificence, but in the state of their preservation.
Sources:
- Lonely Planet Egypt, 8th Edition
- Egyptology Online
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